Top 10 Supercouples Of Color
top row: Stal Stowers, Lamon archey, byton james, and mishael morgan | Second Row: Laurence Fishburne, Al Freeman Jr.and Ellen Holly | Front Row: Debbie Morgan and Darnell Williams
Ever since Soap Operas became a fixture on daytime television nearly 100 years ago, romance has been a driving force behind narratives. Audiences love a slow burn, will they/won’t they romance. Similarly, supercouples are often characterized by two people who still find their way to each other, despite the seemingly impossible obstacles in their way.
Over the years, soaps have balanced their focus between families and romance, and supercouples often create families of their own. While people of color have historically been underrepresented in soaps, they have been instrumental in the rise of supercouples. Some iconic romances with people of color have included: David Grant and Kat Speaks (Guiding Light), Nathan Hastings and Olivia Barber (The Young and the Restless), Derek Frye and Mimi Reed (All My Children), Vernon Dupree and Anita Dupree (Beyond The Gates), Jacob Hamilton and Naomi Hamilton (Beyond the Gates), Vincent Hubbard and Kim Fox (EastEnders), Bryan Phillips and Claudia Johnston (General Hospital) and Felix Westwood and Martine Deveraux (Hollyoaks).
10. Michael Bourne and Vanessa Hart
Actors: Jason George and Sherri Saum | Duration: 1997-99 | Soap: Sunset Beach | Network: NBC
Michael Bourne and Vanessa Hart were arguably the main couple of Sunset Beach. A majority of the drama was always surrounding them, one way or another, but this supercouple always managed to get through it. One of Bourne and Hart’s biggest obstacles was Virginia Harrison (Dominique Jennings), who, in one of her most villainous schemes, impregnated Hart without her consent using a turkey baster laced with Tyus Robinson's (Russell Curry) sperm, to make it appear as though Hart cheated on Bourne, who was infertile, in one of her never-ending her efforts to break them up.
Bourne and Hart were such a significant supercouple because they placed Black characters in prominent roles on a Soap Opera at a time when people of color were underrepresented on daytime television. They were a driving force for several chains of events, and their relationship was one of the soaps’ most enduring stories, starting at the beginning of the series and lasting until the series finale, which included their double wedding with Ben Evans (Clive Robertson) and Meg Cummings (Susan Ward). On a soap with so many twists and turns, Bourne and Hart were an anchor to audiences tuning in every day during Sunset Beach’s near three-year long run.
9. Eli Grant and Lani Price
Actors: Lamon Archey and Sal Stowers | Duration: 2017-2024 | Soap: Days of Our Lives | Network: NBC
Eli Grant and Lani Price have a complex relationship, characterized by love, loss, and reconciliation. One of their biggest obstacles was the loss of their son, David, who was still born. To make matters worse, Grant left Price on their wedding day, to pursue a relationship with Gabi Hernandez (Camila Banus). Despite everything, they found their way back to each other. Grant and Price are now married with twins, Carver and Jules.
Grant and Price are such a significant supercouple due to the obstacles they’ve had to overcome, which only made them stronger. The loss of a child is an unimaginable grief. The fact that Grant and Price not only overcame this grief, but found their way back to each other, solidifies their status as one of daytime television’s greatest supercouples.
8. Chad Harris and Whitney Russell
Actors: Donn Swaby #1/Charles Divins #2 and Brook Kerr | Duration: 1999-2007 | Soap: Passions | Network: NBC
The romance between Chad Harris and Whitney Russell was one of the most enduring relationships on Passions. One of their earliest obstacles involved a love triangle in which Harris was at the center, choosing between Russell and her sister Simone Russell. Their relationship was further complicated when it was believed Harris and Russell were siblings. Despite several roadblocks, they married in 2006. However, the romance between Harris and Russell came to an end when Harris had an affair with Vincent Clarkson (Phillip Jeanmarie/Daphnée Duplaix), who was, unknown at the time, his nephew, then tragically killed by his own father, Allister Crane (John Reily).
Harris and Russell are such a significant supercouple because of their longevity. Their romance lasted the entire duration of the soap’s NBC run, despite all the difficulties in their way, including outside sources and a believed familial connection. Despite ending tragically, Harris and Russell are remembered as one of the greatest supercouples of all time for placing people of color at the center of the story on Passions.
7. Devon Hamilton and Hilary Curtis
Actors: Bryton James and Mishael Morgan | Duration: 2013-18 | Soap: The Young and the Restless | Network: CBS
Devon Hamilton and Hilary Curtis may not have been together as long as other supercouples, but their impact can’t be understated. The couple quickly rose to popularity in the summer of 2014 as they began a forbidden affair soon after Curtis’ wedding to Hamilton’s father, Neil Winters (Kristoff St. John). Hamilton and Curtis face several obstacles including Curtis being intimidated by Hamilton’s billion-dollar inheritance, Hamilton believing Curtis is interested in other men, their trepidation in hurting Neil, Curtis’ disappearance on their honeymoon, her kidnapping and subsequent memory loss at Neil's hands and Curtis’ consistent lying driving Hamilton away.
Hamilton and Curtis are an iconic supercouple because of how they turned the Winters family dynamic on their head, and their tragic ending. When their affair was exposed, the relationship between Hamilton and Neil was changed forever. Another element that makes the couple appealing to audiences is the forbidden nature of their relationship, with viewers rooting for them despite the odds being against them. Although they divorced in 2017, they still loved each other when Curtis tragically died in 2018. The forbidden romance and tragic ending for Hamilton and Curtis is comparable to Romeo and Juliet.
6. Malcolm Winters and Olivia Barber-Hastings
Actors: Shemar Moore and Tonya Lee Williams | Duration: 1997-99; 2004-05 | Soap: The Young and the Restless | Network: CBS
The relationship between Malcolm Winters and Olivia Barber-Hastings was characterized by several make-ups and breakups, before solidifying their romance with their wedding in 1997. During their relationship and marriage, they built a family, with Winters becoming a father figure to Barber-Hastings’ son, Nathan Hastings, Jr. However, their relationship is plagued by multiple outside factors, most significantly Winters’ infidelity with his ex, Callie Rogers (Michelle Thomas), resulting in their divorce and the breakdown of their family, which hurt Nathan more than anyone else.
Winters and Barber-Hastings were also involved in a complicated dynamic with Winters’ brother, Neil Winters, and Barber-Hastings’ sister, Drusilla “Dru” Barber (Victoria Rowell). Dru and Barber-Hastings were total opposites: in their parents’ eyes, oldest daughter Barber-Winters could do no wrong, while Dru couldn’t do anything right. Prior to their relationship, Winters and Dru had a daughter, Lily Winters (Christel Khalil), as a result of Winters raping Dru while she was married to Neil. Barber-Hastings’ choice to be in a relationship with her sister’s rapist only strained their relationship further. At the end of the day, neither relationship worked out and family dynamics were changed beyond repair.
The relationship between Winters and Barber-Hastings on The Young and the Restless was so significant because they placed two African American families at the center of the drama in Genoa City. The Barber and Winters families were the only two African American families on the soap for many years, and the romance between Winters and Barber-Hastings was a significant step forward in representation for people of color on Daytime Dramas. Despite not working out in the end, Winters’ and Barber’s relationship was notable for being one of the earliest Black supercouples on a Soap Opera.
5. Abe Caver and Alexandra “Lexie” Brooks
Actors: James Reynolds and Cyndi James Gossett #1/Angelique Francis #2/Shellye Broughton #3/Renee Jones #4 | Duration: 1988-2012 | Soap: Days of Our Lives | Network: NBC
Abe Caver and Lexie Brooks aren’t just one of the most significant couples of color, they’re one of the most iconic couples on Days of Our Lives. They were married for more than 20 years, longer than General Hospital’s Luke and Laura, who are known as one of daytime television’s first supercouples. They eloped offscreen in 1991, and later had a son, Theo (Tyler Joseph Andrews), in 2003, who was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in his youth.
However, Caver and Brooks’ relationship wasn’t without its problems. One of their biggest challenges was the conflict between Brooks’ father, international criminal Stefano DiMera (Joseph Mascolo), and Caver. Brooks struggled to overcome her father’s negative influence, but being a partner to Caver and mother to Theo gradually helped become a better person. Despite consistently being in an on again/off again relationship, they eventually found their way back to each other. When Brooks was diagnosed with brain tumors that were revealed to be fatal, she died peacefully in Caver’s arms.
Caver and Brooks were such a significant supercouple because they made each other better people. Brooks learned to overcome her father’s influence and became a better person, while Caver grew to accept Brooke for who she is. Significantly, Theo’s diagnosis as being on the autism spectrum brought awareness to the topic of neurodivergence. Theo is an example of how people can on the autism spectrum can live successful lives, while still portraying their everyday challenges. At a time when neurodivergence wasn’t talked about nearly as much on television, viewers could relate Caver, Brooks, and Theo’s experience with Autism.
4. Hampton “Hamp” Speaks and Gillian “Gilly” Grant
Actors: Vince Williams and Amelia Marshall | Duration: 1992-94 | Soap: Guiding Light | Network: CBS
Hamp Speaks and Gilly Grant weren’t together very long but still made enough of an impact worthy of supercouple status. Speakes was a jazz musician, activist, and former football player who was the father of the character Kat Speakes (Nia Long). Grant was a career woman secretly working for the villainous Roger Thorpe (Michael Zaslow), who was blackmailing her. Grant was a sex worker in past, which she tried to hide from Speaks. When Grant’s history was revealed, her marriage to Speaks fell apart due to her lies.
Although they were a short-lived couple, Speaks and Grant were significant for placing characters of color at the center of the drama on Guiding Light. The 90s were a period of transition for representation of diverse groups in media. While there is still much work to do, even today, Speaks and Grant allowed viewers to see themselves represented on soap operas as fully developed, three-dimensional characters, not just tokens of diversity.
3. Ed Hall and Carla Gray
Actors: Al Freeman Jr. and Ellen Holly | Duration: 1973-79 | Soap: One Life to Live | Network: ABC
While they didn’t reach the same success as some of the later supercouples, the relationship between Ed Hall and Carla Gray was one of the earliest depictions of romance between Black characters on One Life to Live. Gray initially appeared on the soap as a receptionist for Dr. Jim Craig (Nat Polen) passing as an Italian American woman, in order to take advantage of the opportunities that weren’t available to Black women at the time. After Gray’s true identity is revealed, she begins a romantic relationship with Lt. Hall, and their nuptials were the first wedding of a Black couple on daytime television. Their marriage lasts until 1979, when Gray marries Jack Scott (Arthur Burghardt), a surgeon who arrived in Llanview in 1978 and operated on Ed to fix his heart condition.
The relationship between Hall and Gray reached supercouple status because of the milestones they achieved for daytime television. Hall and Gray two of the earliest Black main characters on a Soap Opera, and Gray’s storyline was notable for calling attention to race relations at a time before such discussions were commonplace. Significantly, their nuptials were the first wedding between a Black couple on a Soap Opera. Even after both characters were gone, their impact was still felt as One Life to Live was one of the first soaps to address social issues and continued to do so until the end of its 43-year run.
2. Neil Winters and Drucilla “Dru” Barber
Actors: Kristoff St. John and Victoria Rowell | Duration: 1993-1998; 2003-2007 | Soap: The Young and the Restless | Network: CBS
Neil Winters and Drucilla “Dru” Barber was one of the earliest supercouples on The Young and the Restless. They were married twice, from 1993-98, and 2003-07, and had two children: Lily Winters, Winters’ legal daughter who was conceived when Winters’ brother, Malcolm, raped Barber, and adopted son Devon Hamilton. Their first marriage ended because of conflicting ambitions; Winters wanted Barber to be a stay-at-home mother, while she pursued her career as a fashion model. Their love story came to a tragic in 2007 when Barber was presumed dead.
Winters and Barber were one of the most iconic supercouples on daytime television for positioning a Black family at the center of the story on The Young and the Restless, and for defying gender expectations in relationships. Despite finding out that Lily wasn’t his biological daughter, Winters still accepted her as his own. Significantly, Barber chose her career over marriage, proving that a woman can be satisfied in her life outside of being a wife and mother.
1. Jesse Hubbard and Angela “Angie” Baxter
Actors: Darnell Williams and Debbie Morgan | Duration: 1981-1988; 1994-1995; 2001-2002; 2008-2011; 2013 | Soap: All My Children | Network: ABC
It should come as no surprise that Officer Jesse Hubbard and Dr. Angie Baxter take the number one spot for the best supercouple of color. They were one of All My Children’s signature couples, remaining a couple for a majority of the soap’s 41-year run. At the height of All My Children’s popularity in the 80s, Hubbard and Baxter’s romance drew young audiences that advertisers value most, allowing the soap to place between second and fourth place in the ratings until the mid 90s.
One of the couple’s most significant moments was Hubbard’s “death” in 1988, and his return from the dead in 2008. He was shot in the line of duty and presumed dead, but his return in 1988 reveals that he faked his own death to protect his family. Hubbard’s return from the dead brought both characters back to the soap after extended absences, at a time when All My Children was lacking in diversity among its cast.
Hubbard and Baxter’s romance produced two children, son Frankie (Cornelius Smith Jr.), in 1983, and daughter Ellie Hubbard in 2011, who was stillborn. Baxter’s second pregnancy was another significant moment for the couple, as she became legally blind as a result of treating a young boy without proper gear, and stopped taking her medication due to her pregnancy. She passes out during labor, and he has to deliver their stillborn baby, then swaps their child for an abandoned baby in a car and buries Ellie, telling her they’ll always love her. They rename their baby girl Lucille "Lucy" Eleanor Hubbard, but her biological mother, Maya, starts working for Hubbard and Baxter. Hubbard, overcome with grief and guilt, confesses to both of them, and Maya takes off with Lucy, leaving the couple devasted.
Hubbard and Baxter are the most iconic supercouple of color of all time due to all the obstacles they had to overcome, while still finding their way back to each other. Similarly, they were instrumental to the success of All My Children by drawing diverse audiences to the soap daily, allowing audiences to see themselves represented on television. It’s been years since they were on our screens, but Hubbard and Baxter paved the way for future supercouples of color to come.
